349,000 SF in New Deals for Crafts Retailer to Occupy former Mervyns and Gottschalks Locations
Hobby Lobby, a large-format seller of craft supplies and home decor, has signed five new store leases to occupy more than 349,000 square feet in California.
The new Hobby Lobby locations, first in their respective markets, include a 61,600-square-foot location in Modesto, a 76,211-square-foot location in Temecula, a 76,248-square-foot location in Roseville, a 74,991-square-foot location in Rancho Cucamonga, and a 60,000-square-foot store in Merced.
The Merced store is a former Gottschalks, and the other four are all former Mervyns locations. All five Hobby Lobby locations are slated to open in Fall 2011.
According to Solomon Ets-Hokin, senior vice president of Colliers International, Oakland, "The demise and/or downsizing of certain retailers, coupled with a diminishment in demand since 2008 with regards to 50,000 to 70,000 sq. ft. retail spaces, has created a unique opportunity for disciplined tenants like Hobby Lobby to attain locations and leasing terms that suit their healthy and sustainable business model."
Ets-Hokin represented Hobby Lobby in all five leases, following closely the retailer's first location to open in California - when Ets-Hokin represented Hobby Lobby in a lease in Visalia, Calif. The Oklahoma City-based tenant operates more than 490 stores in 40 states.